Variant
by FacelessGhoul
Summary: INDEFINITE HIATUS! The truth of the matter was, over 90% of the world population was no longer human. There were few and far between who managed to cling to their humanity for the past two months— a miracle in and of itself. (Zombie AU. Warning: Blood, gore, and ridiculous amounts of profanity ahead.)
1. The Beginning of the End

**Author's Note: This is a bit of an AU idea I've been toying with. I may or may not write more to it, depending on how people react to the story. Frankly, this idea is in a very rough stage and was a spur of the moment decision to write.**

 **Essentially, it's your run of the mill zombie AU, but I'm attempting to pull a little twist here. You'll see.**

 **Now, this first chapter isn't too bad, but I intend to get really gory and creepy in future chapters, as is a habit of mine. You've been warned.**

* * *

It was the end of the world as they knew it. Like any imaginable apocalyptic situation, it had started small. Extremely small in fact, to the point that some of the Survivors spitefully theorized that it could have been prevented if not for sheer stupidity. It had all begun in a small town on the countryside. The first zombie had appeared quite sporadically, and perhaps if someone had had the sense to watch some good old fashioned horror films, they'd have also had the sense to blow the thing's head off.

It didn't truly matter anymore. Theory or not, what was done was done.

The truth of the matter was, over 90% of the world population was no longer human. There were few and far between who managed to cling to their humanity for the past two months— a miracle in and of itself.

Ichigo was one of those survivors. He and several others who'd banded together in hopes that having so many others to watch their backs, they may stand a fighting chance. At least, that was the idea.

It had worked well enough thus far, but relations were strained between many. Especially when they had to put up with that quite literally _mad_ scientist, Mayuri. How he'd managed to survive thus far was a conundrum to all the other survivors of their little community. He cared more about his research than his own life. He'd demonstrated such many a time whilst attempting to examine the undead that infested their world on multiple occasions. Truly, no one had a clue how he hadn't been turned.

Zombies.

A thing that Ichigo had believed he wouldn't see anywhere short of a corny horror film or countless video games up until two months ago.

He'd been one of many to doubt the plausibility of such a creature ever coming into being. When his father had informed him he was putting together a 'zombie apocalypse survival kit', Ichigo had mocked him. Now he was dead.

In the end, the kit hadn't been nearly good enough for what Fate had in store for them. His father had survived the first wave, and even the third that devastated the small town they used to call home. For a month and two weeks, his father amazed Ichigo with his skill, cleverness, and ingenious preparation.

Then one night, they'd been taken by surprise. Little Yuzu had been the first to go. It had been early that day, two in the morning. Ichigo remembered it well, because the numbers on his alarm clock as he heard the screams downstairs were all carved into his mind.

The scene would replay in his mind every night without fail, like some macabre broken record.

There had been knocking on the door. Frantic knocking. Banging, rather. Panicked screams for help.

Yuzu, the lightest sleeper of them all, had rushed down the stairs to allow the person in. Little did she know, by the time she got to the door, the horde had already caught the Survivor outside. They were upon her in seconds.

Isshin had ordered Ichigo to hide with his sister, Karin in the closet while he fought off the horde and saved Yuzu. The latter of which no one had known they'd been much too late to even attempt.

Isshin had fought valiantly, but had been devastated by his youngest child's death. In life and death, especially in a post-apocalyptic situation such as their circumstance had been and still was, a moment was all it took.

His brief seconds of vulnerability had cost him, and the horde overtook him. He didn't stand a chance.

The strangest event of that night was perhaps that Ichigo and Karin were the sole survivors. Somehow, the hordes searched his bedroom, but never checked the closet. He remembered clearly how he could hear them, ambling around, moaning and groaning right outside the door. He'd even heard a strange, raspy snuffling against the door. As if some terrifying beast had been trying to sniff them out. In a sense, Ichigo supposed that's exactly what it had been.

At the time, he'd been convinced they'd be eaten for sure, because surely being able to hear their heavy breathing and hammering heartbeats was child's play for the zombies. Though the creatures could appear slow and clumsy at times, when they were on the prowl, their superior speed and senses were seldom matched.

However, as quickly as they'd arrived, they'd vacated the premises. Ichigo and Karin survived to live another day.

* * *

"Are you daydreaming _again_ , Ichigo? It's nearly your shift for lookout!"

As he was jolted out of his thoughts, he looked up at the person who'd just entered the bedroom, "Sorry Renji, a lot on my mind, you know. I was thinking about Dad."

The redheaded, tatted up man just grunted in recognition that he understood. Renji was an interesting guy. At first glance, one may assume he was a pushover. In fact, from behind many guys had mistaken him for a woman (a mistake that had got each one a black eye). Upon closer inspection, one might see the lean, corded muscle rippling beneath the man's skin. The way his dark brown eyes, usually so soft and warm, could harden in an instant. Abarai Renji was no pushover. He'd certainly proven he could hold his own in the community.

The redhead turned to leave, glancing over his shoulder back at Ichigo, "Don't beat yourself up over it. There was nothing you could have done. No sense dwelling on the past, man. Besides, you gotta be strong for your sis. All she's got is you now."

Ichigo gave a stiff nod, "I know. Thanks, Renji."

Renji grunted again as he left the room. He did Ichigo the courtesy of closing the door behind him (something that not all Survivors cared to do for him), allowing Ichigo some brief privacy for a few moments more while he pulled himself together.

After he evened his breathing out and eased the slight tremble in his fingers, he set his face into his trademark scowl.

Time to mingle with the community.

Ichigo stood from his desk and walked out of his room. He headed down the stairs to the adjoining kitchen and living room— their community base of operations, or that's what they called it anyway. It wasn't much, but it was the best they could do. They couldn't afford a more spacious area just yet, what with larger living arrangements being easier to infiltrate.

Ichigo didn't particularly enjoy being around the others. It wasn't really that he didn't like people or anything, but he didn't like when people… said things about him.

"I'm telling you guys, we should never have brought those two in. Haven't you ever thought of how odd it is, the story that Kurosaki boy told us? I bet you he's, well… you know. One of _them_. Maybe the girl is too."

That was Ganju.

"That isn't a very nice thing to say! Ichigo is my friend, and I think we can trust him!"

Orihime.

"Do you now? Ichigo _was_ your friend. I'm telling you, something's not right with the guy. One time, I saw him napping on the couch, and get this— he wasn't breathing! He was asleep for half an hour, and didn't breathe that whole time, but when he woke up, he started breathing again after a few minutes, like it was an afterthought or something. That guy isn't normal, I'm telling you."

"Telling rumors again, are we, Ganju?" Ichigo said coolly as he held the man's shoulder in an iron grip. There was an unnatural smile on his face that didn't even come close to reaching his eyes.

"N-not at all!" Ganju stuttered out too quickly. He looked to the other occupants of the room, "Right, guys?"

No one jumped to his defense. Ichigo had no doubts that there were at least a couple people who shared Ganju's sentiments, but anyone other than Ganju wasn't senseless enough to admit it in front of Ichigo himself.

Ichigo's grip tightened on Ganju's shoulder, making the stout, slightly shorter man whimper, "Listen, Ganju. It's important that this community has trust. Each other is all we've got, so I don't want anyone planting seeds of doubt, whether they're about me, or anyone really."

Ganju nodded his head eagerly, "O-of course, Ichigo! Won't happen again."

With that, the orangette released his grip. He started walking away, but stopped, "Oh, and Ganju?" he said in a sickeningly sweet voice all of a sudden.

"Yeah?"

A silver flash whizzed by Ganju's face.

 _ **THUNK.**_

Behind Ganju was a knife, now embedded in the wall. A small trickle of blood flowed freely from a now visible shallow cut on his cheek.

"If I _ever_ catch you saying or doing something to endanger my sister again, the next one goes between your eyes. Have I made myself perfectly clear?" Ichigo demanded, his voice going deathly low.

Ganju gulped, "Crystal."

There was a tense moment of silence. Then Ichigo was smiling as if no conflict at all had just transpired, "Good. What's for breakfast?"

"Hash and fruit. We found a lot of cans during our raid, so help yourself," Rukia said as she entered the room with a plate of aforementioned food.

"Awesome," Ichigo said, wandering into the kitchen to grab a heaping plate.

Once he sat down at the table with his food, he turned to look at a girl with long, mid-back length orange hair. She was one of the few people he'd known before the apocalypse.

"By the way, Orihime," he spoke to the girl, getting her to look up at him, "thanks for standing up for me back there. I really appreciate it."

She smile gently, "You're welcome, Ichigo. Any time."

Ichigo gave her a fleeting smile in return before going back to his food.

As he did, he silently brooded. It was true that no one really liked Mayuri, but Ichigo was runner up to the man for least trusted person in the community.

It wasn't as if he had a shady personality. There just tended to be things about him that were mysterious, and which he couldn't explain. Such as the incident Ganju had brought up for instance, when he really hadn't breathed for a good three minutes after waking up. He hadn't known he also wasn't breathing while he was asleep.

At the time, he hadn't felt like he expressly _needed_ oxygen, and there was no pressing urge to take a deep inhalation of breath. Until he'd felt the need to speak at the time, he hadn't even thought to breathe.

There was also the matter of his body temperature, which was always much lower than the natural body temperature. This was a fact he'd never confided to anyone, but the few people who had ever touched his skin were well aware of the fact that he was eerily colder than any regular human should be.

Then there was the time that the zombies had come into his home, and didn't bother even opening the closet door to check if someone living was inside. One could just assume they'd overlooked the hidey hole, but Ichigo knew better. Zombies were thorough, if nothing else. Stupid though they were, they would leave no nook or cranny unchecked.

Which meant only one thing: they knew someone was inside the closet, but had chosen not to attack. Zombies didn't simply _not_ attack humans. It wasn't done.

That, more than anything else, had been what made many in the community suspicious of him. After all, what kind of monster did **zombies** avoid attacking?

* * *

"How is she, Mayuri?" Ichigo asked the mad scientist as he entered the room.

The man hardly looked up from the journal he was furiously writing in, "Hmm? Oh, the girl. She's still running a high fever. At this rate, she may die."

The man didn't sound too dismayed by the prospect. Ichigo grit his teeth. He'd had to begrudgingly allow this man to look after Karin, because he was the only one with at least an inkling of medical knowledge.

Even that wasn't enough. It filled him with equal parts rage and sorrow, the idea that his only remaining family could be taken from him at any given moment by the flu. A regular, run of the mill flu.

Something he'd experienced plenty of times in the past, but had been able to get treatment quickly and efficiently for via his father.

The feeling of powerlessness his sister's situation gave him didn't help matters. He absolutely loathed that there was nothing he could do.

' _I swear, Karin, I_ will _help you…'_

* * *

Ichigo's shift on lookout was peaceful as always. The hordes never bothered attacking when he was on lookout. He'd never questioned it before, but with all the flak he'd been getting recently, he was beginning to wonder.

All the others had witnessed attacks while on lookout at least once. Ichigo however had yet to have a shift that wasn't peaceful.

It was as if they avoided attacking because they knew he was nearby.

But that was impossible, right?

"You don't belong here."

Ichigo looked up to see a woman who was rather short in stature with black hair and dark eyes. She wore black tights and a sleeveless skin-tight shirt to match. She had a .22 strapped in a holster on either hip. Soifon. Despite appearances, she was the community's record holder for most consecutive kills in a single fight against the hordes. Her abilities gave her a lot of clout to throw around.

Ichigo groaned, "Tell me something I don't know."

"If you know, you should leave. Ganju's about as useful as a dull blade, but he was right about one thing. You're nothing but trouble," the woman crossed her arms.

"Believe me, I'd leave if I could, but Karin…"

"Quit being delusional. We all know she's going to die. You know it just as well as the rest of us. It's only a matter of time."

Ichigo had a knife to her throat in an instant, "How dare you?!"

"I would appreciate if you remove your weapon from my throat, Kurosaki," Soifon said, and he felt the cold, hard pressure of the muzzle of a gun against his nether regions, "that is, if you want this to stay in tact."

Ichigo growled, eyes narrowing dangerously. He eventually decided it wasn't worth it and lowered his knife, returning it to its hidden holster up his sleeve. It took a few moments more before Soifon withdrew her gun.

"You're getting a little too brazen with that temper of yours, Kurosaki," Soifon snapped, "I'd better not catch you pulling a stunt like that again."

"Don't worry," he said, "you won't."

She watched him with open suspicion upon her face, then turned on her heel and left. Ichigo cursed under his breath as the door closed. Soifon was always antagonizing him. The woman hadn't been afraid to admit from the beginning her dislike of him.

It was probably thanks to her that Ganju so openly protested his presence in the community.

Despite the fact that not everyone was distrustful of him, Ichigo knew it was only a matter of time before he got kicked out of the community. Things were getting too tense, and soon it wouldn't matter what his friends said in his defense.

He dreaded when that time would come. He could only hope that he could cure Karin by then.

* * *

Days went by. Things weren't looking so good for Karin anymore.

Ichigo was at his wit's end; he couldn't take it anymore.

It was obvious already that Mayuri wasn't even trying. So he'd take matters into his own hands.

"And just where do you think _you're_ going?"

Ichigo swiveled around. Of course it was Soifon giving him shit for leaving the house. He sneered, "Out."

"Out where?" she pressed, her eyes narrowing with suspicion.

"That's none of your concern," Ichigo said, brushing past her and grabbing the doorknob.

She grabbed his wrist, and damn did she have a strong grip, "That's where you're wrong. See, you're part of this community. Anyone in our community who goes outside is of my concern, and that includes you."

"You sure change your tune fast," he grumbled, "just yesterday, you were _wanting_ me to leave."

"What of it? You challenging my authority?"

"Not at all," Ichigo replied with an air of nonchalance that he didn't truly have.

She relinquished her hold on his wrist, but then slammed her hand on the door, making it impossible for him to leave, "I don't like your tone. Here's the deal. I'll let you go do whatever it is you're wanting to do, on one condition: you have to have someone of my choosing accompany and monitor you."

Ichigo ground his teeth in agitation, but after releasing a heavy sigh, he told her, "Fair enough. Who do you have in mind?"

She smirked, "I have just the man for the job…"

* * *

"Ugh, why did it have to be Byakuya?" Ichigo whined to himself.

The man himself was several paces behind him, keeping a watchful eye on him. Byakuya was a man of average height with long black hair, and equally black eyes. He somehow always had a regal look about him, even if he was to wear rags (which he never would).

In Ichigo's honest opinion, Byakuya wouldn't be that bad a guy, if it weren't for the fact he was a stickler for the rules. He was quite anal about rules.

Needless to say, Ichigo believed some rules were just made to be broken. Not all, but some.

"You're searching for something."

Ichigo let out a _very_ manly screech. Byakuya had come up to walk beside him at some point. The teen grabbed at his chest, trying not to pay too much mind to the fact nothing was beating in there.

"Give a guy a little warning, would you?" he asked the man.

"I apologize," Byakuya replied, "I am accustomed to making no sound when I walk," he tilted his head, looking at Ichigo sideways, "however, you could benefit from paying more attention to your surroundings. We can't afford to be lost in thought."

"Spare me the lecture, Byakuya. I've heard it a hundred times before," Ichigo ground out.

"Have you? Then one would think you would have learned something by now," the man replied crisply.

"Listen, I'm really not in the mood."

Byakuya dropped the subject. He was quiet for all but five minutes.

"What are you searching for?"

Ichigo was about to make a snarky comeback about how the aristocratic looking man was awfully talkative or curious today, but as he turned to look at the man, he got a good look at the concern on his face. Ichigo shrugged, "You know my sister's got the flu?"

Byakuya inclined his head slightly in a nod.

Ichigo watched the horizon for hordes as they walked, "I'm hoping to find some medicine for her. A doctor would be even better, but I don't think it's very likely that we'll find one of those. Least not one who's a Survivor."

Byakuya hummed his agreement, "A doctor would be invaluable, but I agree it's not very likely we can find a living one. Perhaps we can find medicine for your sister though."

Ichigo was taken aback. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped. He barely managed to speak coherently, "Oh. Uh. Um… Thank you."

Byakuya scoffed, "For what? She's your sister. I'll not fault you for wanting to help her. I'd like to think I would have done the same for Rukia."

This was the reason why Ichigo actually liked Byakuya. It was the one thing he valued over rules. Family.

Not many of them still had people around who they knew during the time before the apocalypse. Even fewer still had family members. He and Byakuya had their sisters, and oddly enough, Mayuri had his daughter, Nemu.

It would seem that pairing Ichigo up with Byakuya hadn't worked in Soifon's favor this time around. Ichigo grinned. He had hope that this venture just might be successful.

* * *

Eventually, they happened upon a small clinic. Ichigo pointed it out and Byakuya nodded. They went inside to investigate.

It came as no surprise that the hordes were inside the clinic.

What did was the fact that when Byakuya and Ichigo entered, they separated like the Red Sea to allow the two to pass.

Byakuya raised a single brow at that, "Is there something you'd like to tell me, Kurosaki?"

"Not particularly," he replied slowly.

Somehow, he wasn't sure telling Byakuya that he thought they recognized him as one of their own would go over well. Besides, it wasn't as if he was getting insatiable cravings for human flesh or anything. He still had his conscience in tact. So there was nothing to worry about, and no reason to tell Byakuya, who would no doubt tell the rest of the community about it.

They walked through the open pathway between the crowds of undead with Byakuya keeping an eye on their backs, in case the zombies decided they wanted to attack them after all. They found a door. There were plenty of doors, but this particular door was the only one the zombies were allowing them to see.

They'd purposely led them there.

"I must admit this is creepy," Byakuya told Ichigo calmly, in a low voice. The man worried that if he acted too spooked, the zombies would smell it and attack.

Ichigo shrugged, "Yeah, a little. Let's just hurry up and see if there's anything we can use in here."

Byakuya didn't protest, so Ichigo opened the door…

… and was immediately attacked by a scrawny guy with shoulder length black hair and dark circles under his owlish eyes. He was wimpy looking to say the least, but he still managed to catch Ichigo by surprise.

"Whoa there!" he exclaimed, holding his arm up in front of him.

The scalpel that had been aimed at his head hit the back of his forearm instead. The scrawny, wimpy man reeled back, his eyes widening comically.

"Y-you can _talk_?!" he cried incredulously.

Ichigo rolled his eyes, "Of course I can talk," he told him, "I'm not like them," he jabbed a thumb back toward the zombies that were now wandering around, seeming lost, but still oddly avoiding him and Byakuya.

"W-w-what are you?"

"A friend," Ichigo said, "and him too," he gestured at Byakuya.

"Our community isn't too far from here," Byakuya explained, "one of our own has the flu, and we're here searching for medicine for her."

The smaller man seemed to weigh his options, fidgeting nervously with his thumbs all the while. He sighed, "Well, okay, come in. I think we still have some medicine you can use for your friend, but I have a request."

"What would that be?" Ichigo asked as the small man led them inside the spacious room, closing the door behind him.

He halted to a stop. There, on the floor, was a woman in a lab coat. Her black hair was so long that some of it was limp on the floor. Her eyes were closed as she appeared to be sleeping. As his eyes trailed lower, he saw that her ankle was discolored and swollen considerably. It had to be broken.

"We haven't been able to escape because her ankle is broken, and all of those are out there waiting for us. I can't even put her ankle in a splint because they're blocking off the supply room out there. Do you think you can help her?" he asked them unsurely.

Ichigo studied her for a moment. She was quite a beautiful woman, and if the lab coat and ID clipped to it were any indication, she was a doctor. He recalled his conversation with Byakuya earlier. They weren't kidding when they'd spoken of how a doctor would be invaluable. This woman could help Karin.

"If I can get the supplies for you, you can fix her up?" he asked the man, just to clarify.

He received a nod.

"Got it. I'll be back in a jiff," he stopped at the door, "by the way, I didn't get your names."

The scrawny man gave a hesitant smile, "Hanatarou. Yamada Hanatarou. She's Ms. Unohana."

Ichigo smiled for a moment, "Nice to meet you. I'll get that splint for you, and then we can get out of here. Easy-peasy."

Hanatarou didn't look so sure himself, but that was okay. He'd see.

Once he'd made sure to close the door behind him, he noticed that the zombies had yet again parted to make a pathway for him. This time, the end of the pathway was exactly where he needed to go. The supply room.

Now he was sure they were doing this on purpose. But why?

Perhaps he'd ponder that later.

For now, his main focus should be helping the doctor lady, Unohana, so that she and Hanatarou could help Karin. He grabbed the stuff and hurried back to the room.

Hanatarou seemed surprised that he had been successful and unscathed, whereas Byakuya remained stoic as ever. Unohana was beginning to stir into wakefulness.

Hanatarou took the supplies off Ichigo's hands and got to work on splinting Unohana's ankle. When he was done, he turned to Ichigo.

"I am in your debt, sir," he said with a deep formal bow.

Ichigo waved him off, "It was nothing. You or her at least know how to treat the flu, right?"

Hanatarou nodded eagerly, "Of course! If you can get us to your place safely, we should be able to help her right away."

"Okay," Ichigo replied. He looked Unohana, gauging her size. "I should be able to carry her there. You may want to wake her up so she doesn't freak out on us later."

Hanatarou did as Ichigo said and gently shook the woman's shoulder. After her eyes cracked open, he spoke in hushed tones to her. Only after receiving a nod from her did he turn back to Ichigo.

"We're ready to go. I just need to grab some stuff."

"Be quick about it," Ichigo told him.

He then approached Unohana, helping her up. Ichigo hefted her up onto his back, allowing her to wrap her arms around his neck as he hooked his arms under her legs.

"I do hope I'm not too heavy," she whispered.

Ichigo shook his head, "Not at all. I could deadlift twice your weight for fun," he teased.

Unohana giggled at that, "I'm sure you could."

Byakuya was getting antsy. He kept glancing toward the door, as if he expected the hordes to burst through and attack them any moment.

"Hanatarou, any day now!" Ichigo called out to the guy.

"Coming, coming!" Hanatarou rushed back over to the group with a large satchel over his shoulder.

Ichigo frowned, "What's all that?"

"Medicine, bandages, syringes. Other things," Hanatarou said as he ticked the list off on his fingers, "never can be too prepared."

Ichigo grunted, "I suppose."

"Are we ready to go?" Byakuya asked. Though his voice was a monotone, discrete body language told Ichigo the man was anything but at ease.

"Yep! Lead the way," Hanatarou chirped.

Byakuya reached for the door, but Ichigo lunged in front of him. An impressive feat while carrying Unohana, to be sure.

"Uh, maybe I should… go first," he offered, nodding his head toward the door.

Byakuya contemplated the offer, and after a few seconds of consideration he backed off. Without further ado, Ichigo opened the door.

For the third time, the horde made a pathway for them to pass.

Unohana shivered, "They… aren't attacking…"

"Maybe they're friendly," Ichigo joked.

"I don't think so," Hanatarou spoke up, "just the other day, they were banging on the door, trying to get at us. This is unusual."

"You'll find that many unusual things tend to happen when Ichigo is around," said Byakuya.

Ichigo snapped a glare back at him at the unwanted disclosure of information. Byakuya stared back with a cold, steely gaze. Ichigo looked away.

"Well, so long as we aren't getting attacked, I don't think Ichigo could be a bad guy."

The three men of the group were shocked by Unohana's admonishment. She didn't recede the statement. Ichigo was starting to think that he might like this woman.

* * *

They arrived at the base without complications. When they got there, Ichigo took Unohana to the makeshift lab in the basement, where Karin was being kept. They had her sit in an office chair, which she was able to use to move around the room efficiently enough while she looked over and treated Ichigo's sister.

To Ichigo's relief, Byakuya kept quiet about the happenings while they were about. He knew this because he happened to overhear Soifon arguing with him.

"What do you mean, nothing happened?! He has to be up to something!"

"Not everything Kurosaki does has an ulterior motive, contrary to what you believe. In fact, most of his actions don't. You'd do well to trust a guy like Kurosaki Ichigo, who still has his morals in tact when faced with what we have seen. We can trust him more than _some_ people around the community."

"Are you insinuating something, Kuchiki?!"

"What would make you assume something like that?"

Ichigo snickered from where he stood, hopefully out of hearing range from the two. It was good that some people were being swayed toward his favor. He'd thought that Byakuya would rat him out for sure, but perhaps he'd misjudged the guy.

Byakuya was alright in Ichigo's book.

"Something funny, Ichigo?" Renji asked from the foldable table in the living room. He was staring at a hand of cards. Playing poker with Ikkaku and Yumichika, by the looks of it.

"Nah," Ichigo waved the question off. He slid in the last chair at the table, "Mind if I join you guys?"

"Go ahead. I was just about to deal a new hand," Ikkaku answered as the other two passed in their cards.

Renji grinned mischievously with a glint in his eye, "What do you guys say we sweeten things up a little?"

"Okay, I'll bite," Ichigo said, "what's the deal?"

The redhead covered his mouth with his hand as he chuckled a rather evil sounding chuckle, "Loser's gotta take the night shift tonight."

Ichigo's mouth twisted at that, "The night shift? That's your shift tonight. What happens if you lose?"

"Eh, I'll take my shift and the winner's next night shift or whatever. So, you in, or you too chicken?"

Ichigo grinned, "You're on."

* * *

Ichigo groaned as he trudged outside onto the roof, pulling on a thick coat to protect him from the cold. Not that he actually felt the cold, but the others would question him if he didn't wear it in the frigid nighttime weather. Not to mention, he couldn't afford to grow even colder than he already was— he felt nearly as chill as a corpse as it was.

It had been a spectacular loss. Ichigo was still pretty damn sure Renji had rigged the game somehow. He wasn't sure how, but the guy didn't usually bet unless he knew he was going to win. Hence, he must have cheated.

Not that it really mattered now. He was outside already. It meant that the others would most likely have a peaceful night. He just didn't particularly enjoy actually having to stare at the mindless hordes of the undead clambering around and wandering aimlessly down below.

However, Fate had other plans in store for him tonight.

There was a flash of pure white in the distance. At first, he'd thought he imagined it.

Ichigo dashed those thoughts when he saw it again, but nearer.

Something was out there, and it was coming closer. It was coming right for them. Ichigo's fingers brushed the tips of his hidden blades fondly; an action that instantly calmed him and reminded him that he was not defenseless.

Then it was upon him.

He could feel its presence, though he wasn't sure how. He just knew it was there, very close.

"Boo."

The voice was from right beside him, softly in his ear. Sort of raspy and high, but distinctly masculine. Ichigo yelped as he leaped maybe a good foot or two into the air.

He spun around, sliding one of his hidden blades into his hand.

Before him was a man, or at least Ichigo thought so. His hair was a long and untamed mane, and both his hair and his skin looked like they were supposed to be pure white at some point. He was filthy, covered in dirt and other unmentionable substances that may have included blood and bits of flesh. None of the latter mentioned substances seemed to be his own.

Most haunting of all had to be his eyes, with sclera black as coals and golden irises that practically glowed.

The pale man laughed, and Ichigo could have sworn his tongue was blue, and that he may or may not have had a few sets of fangs.

"Awfully jumpy, arent'cha?" the man asked, then those haunting eyes trailed down to the knife. "What ya gonna do with a thing like that? Cut me? Yer not very nice."

Ichigo scowled at the man, "What are you?"

Yellow and black eyes widened to twice their original size, "Huh? Well, the same thing as what ya are, of course. What else?"

"We don't even look anything alike."

The pale man was put off by the statement, but a smirk slowly crawled across his face, "No two people are exactly the same, doesn't mean we're not the same. Ya see, there are things about ya and me that are very much the same… I'm sure ya've noticed."

"Like what?" he snapped. He didn't like where this was going.

"Surely ya've noticed," the man said waving a hand toward the hordes below. Ichigo caught sight of black fingernails as he did. The man walked a little closer, but not enough to be in range of Ichigo's knife, "they never attack ya."

"Yeah? And?" Ichigo was not going to let one minuscule fact sway him. There were plenty of reasons the zombies may avoid him. It didn't mean he was a monster. But who was he fooling?

"Ya don't feel the need to breathe all the time like _they_ do," the man went on, his smirk only growing wider as he named more facts that Ichigo could not deny, "yer heart doesn't beat. Yer body temperature is colder than natural, but ya don't feel cold at all. But yer not like those down there," he pointed at the mindless hordes, "oh no, because ya have somethin' they don't. Ya still have yer mind."

"What do you want from me?" Ichigo ground out, glaring back at the man.

The man slinked around him, looking him up and down as he walked in a slow circle, "Mm… that's an interestin' question, really. A friend, I guess. Me and ya, we aren't the only ones of our kind. But the others out there, they're vicious. Mean lil fuckers, they are, and can't trust 'em any farther than ya can throw 'em."

"What makes you think you can trust me then?" Ichigo's eyes followed the pale man. He turned his head to watch him as he came around behind his back. Ichigo didn't want to let him out of his sight.

"Nothin' yet. But I got a good feelin' about ya," the man replied without missing a beat. He rolled his eyes then, "Ah, but enough about me. I wanna know. Have ya started to crave their flesh yet?"

"W-what?!"

"Don't play dumb with me. The cravings. Have ya started to get them? Tummy gets the rumblies when ya see them nearby? And it smells so good, ya can practically taste it on yer tongue already. Their food starts to lose its flavor. Ya start to hate how it tastes, and ya can't think of anythin' else but how great it would be to just sink yer teeth in… Just one bite. Just one…"

"No!" Ichigo yelled. "Look, I don't know who you are—"

"Shiro."

"Excuse me?" Ichigo asked, incredulous at the fact that the man had interrupted him like that.

"My name's Shiro," the man said with a grin.

"Look, _Shiro_ ," Ichigo spat, "you're not wanted here. Leave."

Shiro shrugged, "Alright."

Ichigo cried out in surprise as the man took a step back and fell right off the roof. He ran over to the edge of the roof, looking down.

There was no body down there. No hideous blood splatters or anything of the like. It was as if Shiro had been a mere figment of his imagination. He was gone.

Despite that, the damage was done. Ichigo shuddered.

He wouldn't do it. He wouldn't be like that. No way.

 _Just one bite. Just one..._

* * *

 **Author's Note: As usual, I have no beta-reader, so there may be mistakes here and there. Please review to let me know if you caught any grammatical errors, general mistakes, or glaring plot holes. Or just let me know whether you loved it or hated it. All feedback is appreciated so long as it's constructive.**

 **Until next time!**


	2. With Friends Like These

**Author's Note: Feeling a little insecure about this chapter, but here we are. I went through a few ideas of how this chapter would pan out, and it ended up taking a dark turn somewhere along the way. Well, as dark a turn as a post-apocalyptic story can have anyway.**

* * *

Ichigo wasn't sure how long he vacantly stared after where the strange man (zombie?) had disappeared, but at some point during that time, the sun had risen in the sky. Rukia came out onto the roof to relieve Ichigo from his shift.

"Go get some rest, you big idiot," she told him with a good smack to the back of his skull, "I still can't believe you let Renji talk you into that damn bet!"

"You heard about that?" Ichigo rubbed tenderly at the back of his head. Rukia was the smallest girl in the community (except Karin, of course), but she certainly was not the weakest.

"Do you honestly believe you can get anything by me? I'm no idiot," she jabbed Ichigo in the ribs for good measure, "now go get some sleep, before I have to put you in a bed myself."

Ichigo trudged toward the door, "Yes, sir…"

"What was that?!"

"Ma'am! I meant ma'am!"

"That's what I thought."

* * *

The very next day, Ichigo noticed something peculiar. The food had begun to taste a little off. It wasn't unpalatable, but it wasn't quite right either. At first, he assumed maybe it was nearing the expiration date, since foods could start to taste slightly odd to people with sensitive taste buds around that time.

Problem was that Ichigo had never been one of those kinds before.

Then he remembered Shiro's words yesterday. Could it be?

Ichigo shook his head violently. _No!_ He was merely paranoid because the peculiar not-quite-zombie had planted bad thoughts in his mind.

It was nothing.

By tomorrow, he'd forget all about it.

* * *

Only he didn't. In the back of his mind, traitorous thoughts were multiplying. Thoughts of how he could have sworn it was getting worse. He'd already gotten to the point where meat was the only kind of food he could stomach, and not even well. It was only the second day.

* * *

By the the third day, all food tasted rotten, but Ichigo would inevitably try to eat it anyway.

That was when the scent hit him full force, as if his nose had been clogged up his entire life, but now it wasn't and he could smell the amazing mouthwatering scent surrounding him. His stomach growled and churned, and not a person in the room didn't hear the sound.

"Damn, man, if you're that hungry, why aren't you eating?" Renji asked with some obnoxious laughter.

Ichigo chuckled nervously, failing miserably at sounding at ease, "Yeah… silly me, huh?"

Forcing himself to ignore the terrible taste, Ichigo shoveled food in his mouth as fast as he could. He'd just eat it fast enough that he wouldn't have to taste it very long, and force it to stay down. Ignore the amazing scent that wasn't coming from his plate.

He kept it down for all but ten seconds. His stomach churned dangerously and he knew without a doubt he wouldn't be able to force himself to eat it after all.

He only barely made it to the toilet in time. The food tasted worse the second time around.

Soifon, believing he'd caught his sister's flu, sent him to his room. He was basically quarantined. She ordered him to stay in his room and 'rest'. At first, he'd attempted to do just that.

He couldn't sleep for long. Sleeping on an empty stomach was always hard.

He didn't feel sick, but he was _hungry_.

 _Ravenous_ , one might say.

Something outside his bedroom smelled delicious. He was hungry… so very hungry…

 _Just one bite. Just one…_

Ichigo shook his head. He'd prove that Shiro guy wrong. He wouldn't eat his friends.

No way in hell.

He was broken from his inner turmoil by a piercing scream.

"They're attacking! They're coming in through the door! I-I can't stop them! Help!"

 _Rukia!_

Ignoring Soifon's orders, Ichigo leapt from his bed and threw open the door. He rushed up the stairs where the rest of the community had gathered at the door. Rukia was safely inside, but there was furious banging outside the door to the roof.

Ichigo pushed his way to the front of the group, ignoring everyone else's protests at his actions. He didn't even know what he was doing.

His body was moving on its own.

The door was open, and vaguely Ichigo realized he'd been the one to wrench it right open. The hordes were crowding in the doorway, trying to get in. When they noticed Ichigo, there was a sort of instantaneous recognition. They tried to run.

His hand shot out, grabbing hold of the nearest one. The creature let out an inhuman, fearful shriek in a scratchy, high-pitched voice.

It didn't smell quite as good, but it wasn't a friend either. It would do nicely.

* * *

The survivors of the community were in shock. They watched in morbid fascination as Kurosaki Ichigo savagely attacked a zombie, ripping into its flesh with his teeth.

Never before had they seen anything eat a _zombie_. Not even zombies attacked other zombies.

Yet their orange haired comrade(?) was defying all that logic. What they witnessed was brutal. The undead creature continued to shriek and jerk spastically in hopes to escape, but it didn't stand a chance.

Some of the survivors, though they wouldn't admit it, felt sorry for the zombie. They didn't know whether it was crying out in fear or pain, but it was now clear that zombies were capable of experiencing one of the two.

Because of Ichigo.

The ghoulish slaughter they witnessed would haunt them for countless nights to come. Some of the members with weaker stomachs ended up losing their lunch.

When the deed was done, Ichigo sat there with the remnants of the corpse, motionless and sated. His back was to the others, so they couldn't see the blank expression on his visage.

They all watched him with bated breath, half expecting him to come for them next. When he stood and stretched, a few of them flinched or took a step back.

Ichigo turned around, and they all got a good look at his blank face, the bottom half thoroughly coated in dark, nearly black blood. The teen merely walked right by them, as if they weren't even there.

No one bothered him as he returned to his bedroom and closed the door.

They stood in mortified silence as the door slowly clicked shut. The remains of the zombie, mainly bones, a couple mangled body parts, and some bits of flesh still remained on the floor by the open doorway.

Creepiest of all was that the hordes didn't try to break in a second time, despite the open door.

Rukia was the first to speak, "What the hell just happened?"

It was safe to say, she accurately summed up the foggy confusion in most everyone's brains currently.

"Did Ichigo j-just…?" Orihime stuttered out.

"He just… he _**ate**_ that… _thing_ , right in front of us…" Renji trailed off with wide eyes. He looked haggard. If it weren't for the fact he was one of the people who'd already vomited while watching the violent display, perhaps he'd be sick all over again.

Then came the big question that all of them, save one person, were thinking.

"Can we actually trust him anymore?"

Soifon.

Surprisingly, it was Byakuya who spoke up, giving Soifon a stern look, "He has done nothing to harm us. In case you hadn't noticed, he had a perfectly good chance to attack any of us just now, but instead went after one of them. I, for one, am willing to trust Kurosaki Ichigo."

"You would turn traitor to your own kind?" she asked slyly. She had to hold back a smirk, as she believed she'd cleverly cornered the man.

"What makes you believe he isn't on our side?" Byakuya countered with ease.

"Regular humans don't eat people!"

"I'm disappointed, Soifon. You could hardly call those things that attacked us _people_. If he hadn't done that, we'd be the ones getting eaten right now. I'm not on the human side or _their_ side. Think about it," he went on, "all of us humans here in the community, ripe for the taking, but he chose to attack that," Byakuya pointed at the remains on the floor, "and what's more, the hordes out there fear him. They avoid him. I've seen it with my own eyes. I don't know about anyone else, but I'm on the side that survives, and right now, Kurosaki's the best chance we've got."

Everyone was dumbfounded by Byakuya's long winded outburst. Never before had anyone seen him speak so much in one sitting. Soifon couldn't think of another point to argue. Some of the others were looking contemplative of Byakuya's words. There were mutterings of ' _he's right'_ , ' _he's got a point'_ among the crowd.

Byakuya stood tall, gazing over all the unsure expressions, "I say we give Kurosaki a chance. Who's with me?"

The others grew deathly quiet. Rukia was first to speak up yet again.

"I'll side with you, brother. Ichigo has never done anything to hurt us. I think we can trust him.

"If Rukia trusts him, then I do too," Renji stepped forward. If one wasn't looking for it, they wouldn't have even noticed the slight paleness to his face, or how his eyes would occasionally dart around nervously.

"You're just going to go along with this madness?! Both of you?" Soifon demanded.

"Not just them," Yumichika stepped forward, "Ikkaku and I will too. That makes four of us."

Soifon frowned, "You'd rather side with that freak than your own kind?"

Orihime timidly came forward and stood next to Rukia. Rukia took her hand, reassuring her, and Orihime looked up at Soifon with defiance in her eyes, "Ichigo might be a little different, but I still believe he's one of us. Even if what he did was kind of scary. Byakuya and Rukia are right."

"I should have known _you'd_ side with him," Soifon spat, making Orihime cringe, "anyone else want to side with that zombie freak?!" Soifon angrily questioned the remainder of the crowd.

Some hesitance, then Hanatarou stepped forward. That left Ganju, Nemu, and Mayuri siding with Soifon. As Unohana had her sprained ankle to deal with and was still looking after Karin, she wasn't available to give her opinion. Given that she'd taken a liking to Ichigo and was Hanatarou's companion, she'd probably side with Ichigo as well.

Soifon growled, "You filthy traitors."

The community had been divided. On one side was Byakuya, defending Ichigo. Then there was Soifon's side, opposing him. Her side was outnumbered. She spun on her heel and stomped down the stairs to the living room. Nemu and Mayuri were next to leave, returning to the basement where Mayuri's makeshift lab was. Ganju then followed after Soifon like a lost duckling.

The remainder of the community stood around awkwardly, no one really sure of what to do after that exchange. Someone had to speak up, and that person was Byakuya.

"No doubt, this fight isn't over," he said calmly to the others, "I wouldn't put it past Soifon to at least verbally attack Kurosaki. We must keep the peace and reassure him that he belongs here."

The others nodded in agreement.

Byakuya swept a few stray hairs out of his face, "Now then, everyone get some rest. You've earned it. It has been a long day. I will take over the night shift tonight."

* * *

Ichigo had only regained his motor functions back moments after he returned to his room. He lay in his bed, curled up and cowering as far into a corner as he could drag himself. Whatever had been doing those things out there, it couldn't have been him.

He refused to believe it. He wasn't some… some monster with such basest desires. He didn't need human flesh to survive.

" _What was that then?"_ seemed to be whispered from deep within the confines of his mind.

Shut up. Shut up, shut up, _shut up!_

There was a knock at his door, "Ichigo, can I come in?"

"Go away, Rukia," he rasped out.

"Ichigo, please don't be that way!"

"Go away! Why would you want to spend your time with a monster anyway? You all saw it. I'm not human," Ichigo scowled. He rolled over so that he was facing the corner.

The door creaked open. He could hear Rukia's soft footsteps walking over the threshold. The door closed.

"I thought I told you to leave," Ichigo protested more weakly this time. His voice was muffled by the wall he was speaking into.

Still she came closer until she reached a hand out to gently brush over his shoulder. Ichigo stiffened.

"Don't touch me!" he snapped.

Rukia pulled away, but only briefly. She laid her hand more firmly on his shoulder, "No."

Ichigo balked. He rolled over to face her with wide eyes, "'No'?! What do you mean, 'no'?!"

"You're not a monster, and you're not dangerous," she replied, unyielding. Her eyes were daring him to even _try_ arguing again.

Ichigo sat up with a sigh, settling his back into the corner with Rukia sitting a mere foot away from him, "You don't understand, Rukia. I don't know if I can control it."

The short, black-haired girl crossed her arms over her chest, "You did a good enough job 'controlling' it out there. This is the first time we've had a break-in from the hordes and no casualties. Granted, it was a little creepy, but you saved us."

"It wasn't to save you though," Ichigo glared, hands curling into fists, "like I said, you don't understand. It could have easily been you guys I attacked if that break-in hadn't happened. I could barely think through this… this _hunger_."

"Yes, but you were assuming that there was no other way. You assumed you were like the rest of them, but you're not," she pointed out, "you're obviously still able to reason. Otherwise, you wouldn't be beating yourself up so much about it.

"You don't give yourself enough credit. Sure, you could have attacked one of us, but you didn't. You took it out on one of them, and now you know that you can do it to them instead. We just keep you fed, and you'll keep your wits about you. No problem."

Ichigo groaned, slamming his face into his pillow, "You're insufferable… how many others have adopted your crazy mindset?"

"Well, actually it was big brother's idea to take your side. He gave a big— and I mean _really_ big— speech to the rest of us, and now everyone except Soifon, Ganju, and Kurotsuchi and his daughter are in agreement that you're on our side," she said with a triumphant little smile, her chest swelling with pride when she mentioned it was her brother who was first to take Ichigo's side.

"You're all fools," he replied dully. He hesitated before adding, "but I guess that's why I like you guys."

Rukia giggled, "That's the spirit!"

* * *

Ichigo was having second thoughts. Despite Rukia's reassurance, Ichigo wasn't so sure he could breathe easy just yet. The others who trusted him did so under the assumption he had enough control over himself not to snap without so much as a moment's notice. They had too much faith in him.

They didn't understand the hell being around them was putting him through, and too many of them were letting their guards down.

It was a dangerous game they were playing.

For now, his hunger was sated, but that didn't mean the members of the community stopped smelling like some kind of delectable smorgasbord.

In his mind, he knew he wasn't hungry, as his stomach wasn't bothering him. However, he was still experiencing gluttonous cravings. Urges to gorge himself on that which he didn't truly need.

It was a constant struggle to remind himself that, no, he could _not_ take just one bite. That one teensy little bite _would_ indeed hurt _someone_. Never before would he have thought he'd need to remind himself such a thing.

Ichigo was beginning to wonder if it was really such a good idea for him to stick around. Maybe Rukia and Byakuya shouldn't have stuck up for him. He should have let Soifon chase him out of the community. It wasn't like the hordes would attack him out there.

But then, what would happen to Karin?

That was the one thing tying him to this place. Karin needed him, right? She had nearly recovered, and there was no guarantee that the community would treat her well without him there to keep a watchful eye on them.

He'd have to stick around. For Karin's sake.

* * *

Later that day, after he'd managed to reign his emotions in a bit more, Ichigo went downstairs to visit Karin. As he entered, he saw Unohana finishing up taking her temperature.

"How is she?" he asked as he cautiously approached.

"She's nearly made a full recovery, but you could just ask her yourself," Unohana smiled, gesturing a hand toward the girl.

"Brother!" Karin called out, holding out her arms, expectant of a hug.

He had to humor her. One did not simply see Karin requesting a hug and refuse her. It was not done.

"I've been worried about you, Ichigo," she said as he wrapped his arms around her, "people have been coming and saying bad things about you. They aren't true, right?"

Ichigo pulled away. He saw the worry, and the trust in her eyes. She never believed he would do anything to hurt her. She was his sister. The most important thing in the world to him, and the only remaining member of his family.

He shook his head, "No, they're not true. Everything's okay, Karin."

He smiled at her, his eyes closed, because he knew his eyes wouldn't lie.

* * *

The moment he closed the lab door behind himself, he was cornered by the last four people he wanted to see…

Soifon, Ganju, Mayuri, and Nemu.

"Why are you still here?" Soifon demanded, somehow managing to pull off a pose where she was staring down her nose at him despite the fact she was significantly shorter than he was.

"Don't we all have the right to be here as survivors?" he asked.

She crossed her arms, her nose wrinkling a little, "Don't try to sell me that crap. You know better than all of us that you're no Survivor. You may have the others fooled, but not us."

Ichigo wasn't even sure why he bothered defending himself. It wasn't as if she was telling him something new. However, there was still Karin, and besides that, he wanted to leave on his own terms.

"I've never even been bitten," he argued, "not once."

"Oh yeah? And I'm sure that eating the flesh of one of those fuckers will do _wonders_ for you. No normal human being does that," she countered, a sneer setting on her face, "how dare you call yourself one of us?"

He was clearly not getting anywhere with Soifon. As such, he turned his attention on Mayuri, "I know we've had our differences, but I hardly expected you to want to get rid of me."

"Oh, I wouldn't have wanted to get rid of you, and truth be told, I still want to experiment on you," he said, grinning widely with his too flat fake looking teeth, "but you just had to bring in that doctor bitch, and she kicked me out of my own lab!"

"Have you ever considered that the reason you've been kicked out has nothing to do with her being a bitch and everything to do with you being a fucked up piece of work who gets his rocks off by carrying out inhumane experiments?" Ichigo asked pointedly.

Soifon and Ganju both grimaced at the openly mentioned topic of Mayuri's experiments. No one really liked talking about that mess. If there was anything the two of them and Ichigo could all agree on, it was how psychologically _wrong_ Mayuri was. The only one who supported his habit was Nemu, and that was mostly due to obligation because of biological relations. He was her father, after all.

The smile dropped from Mayuri's face, "You _dare_ insult my research?!"

"You can hardly call what you do 'research', clown face," Ichigo replied easily.

Mayuri took a threatening step forward, "I'll carve you into pieces!"

"I'd like to see you try," Ichigo laughed.

"You'll eat those words—" Mayuri was saying as he took another step forward, just as Soifon, Ganju, and Nemu all grabbed a hold of him and held him back. He struggled fiercely, his mad eyes set on Ichigo, "Unhand me! Unhand me this instant!"

"Mayuri, step off! We don't need a fight here!" Soifon ground out, jerking the man a step back.

"Yeah, man, don't you see the crazy glint in his eyes? That's exactly what he wants!" Ganju added.

Ichigo hadn't even realized he was making such an expression. He slowly blinked, dropping the manic smirk that had somehow found its way on his visage.

"I don't care," Mayuri snapped, driving an elbow at Ganju. The man took the hit to the gut, winced a little, but held strong. Mayuri tugged more wildly to no avail, "I'll show him his place!"

"Leave, Kurosaki!" Soifon ordered, nodding her head in the direction of a small space to their side. It was just wide enough for him to run past without touching any of them.

He briefly considered sticking around to see how long it would take before Mayuri broke free and attacked him, because he couldn't think of many better things than a good excuse to rip Mayuri apart—

—but that wasn't the way he was going to operate. He shook the thoughts out of his mind.

Before he could do something incredibly stupid, he darted through the opening and up the stairs. From the kitchen, he could still hear Mayuri shouting for him to come back and fight like a man.

Rukia raised a brow, a small smirk trying to tug at one side of her lips, "What crawled up _his_ ass and died?"

Ichigo snorted, "Him? I insulted his _research_ ," he said, making air quotes with his fingers.

* * *

From that point henceforth, Mayuri seemed to be making it his life's goal to torment Ichigo. Every time he turned around, the creepy man was leering at him from around a corner like some kind of stalker. Ichigo wasn't particularly scared or anything (it wasn't like he couldn't handle Mayuri all on his own), but that didn't mean the guy didn't creep him out.

Time and time again, he wondered why they kept him around. Then again, a select few people wondered the very same thing about him lately, he was sure.

Granted, Ichigo was a monster by circumstance, and there was no way he could foresee, nor control that matter.

Mayuri was a monster of his own design.

* * *

Late afternoon, or perhaps early evening a day or so later, they had an unexpected arrival.

There was a commotion in the mud room. A few members of the community had rushed to the front door to greet him.

Ichigo heard a cheer of, "He's back! Kenpachi's back!"

That was Ikkaku. He and Yumichika had always looked up to the man. Until recently, Zaraki Kenpachi had been away, 'thinning out the hordes', as he called it. No one knew whether his ventures were ever successful, but the fact remained that he always returned unscathed.

The man was terrifying in his own right, and Ichigo was just thankful that Kenpachi hadn't been one of the ones to be turned. No doubt, he'd be ten times scarier as one of them.

The man himself came marching in the living room and plopped down on the one ratty couch they had. A peculiar little girl with pink hair slid off his shoulder and onto his lap. Ichigo had never seen her before.

"Who's that you got there?" he asked, gesturing vaguely toward the small girl.

Her eyes were bright, wide, and curious as she eagerly took in her surroundings. She seemed a little shy, but considering the fact they were in an apocalyptic situation, that was a given. She seemed to have warmed up to Kenpachi, as odd as that notion was.

"Huh?" Kenpachi had only just noticed Ichigo's presence. He pointed down at the girl, "Her? This here's Yachiru. Found her in a junkyard. Thought I'd keep her."

"Uh… like a pet…?" Ichigo asked, unsure. That was certainly what Kenpachi had made it sound like from the way he spoke.

"Yeah, why?" his expression and tone were both deadpan. He was serious.

Ichigo really didn't want to be the one to break it to him that small children weren't pets. So he didn't.

"N-no reason! She's pretty cute. Anyway, I gotta go," he said quickly, attempting to make his escape.

"Ichigo."

He nervously backpedaled, turning to look at Kenpachi. The man looked so serious all of a sudden. He'd been serious before, but this was a more grave kind of serious. Ichigo gulped. A sweat drop dripped down from his temple. Kenpachi was even scarier when he was like this.

"My men tell me something interesting happened during my absence… that it involved you. Would you happen to know about that?" he went on.

His expression was daring Ichigo to even think of lying. Ichigo swore up and down that he could see a dark, oppressive aura coming off the man in droves.

"It would appear that I'm… not quite… human," Ichigo replied.

He didn't lie. Kenpachi was no dog, but he could sniff out a bad lie in an instant. Besides, someone was bound to tell him sooner or later. Better to hear it from the horse's mouth.

"I see… then tell me, what are you now?" Kenpachi asked calmly.

Ichigo didn't know whether it was a blessing or a curse that Kenpachi was taking the news in stride. The man was like a sleeping dragon, waiting for the moment something exciting awoke him and piqued his interest. The orangette dreaded being that interesting something.

"I'm not entirely sure," he answered eventually, "I'm still mostly me, and I'm not a human, nor am I a zombie. Not completely, anyway."

"Oh?"

Ichigo did not like the glint in Kenpachi's one visible eye. He prayed the dragon would sleep another day.

"Yeah," he said, "you can get the specifics from one of the others, I'm sure," he then faked a yawn, "I'm beat. I'm gonna go to bed now."

Kenpachi's eyes narrowed. After a moment, he sighed softly through his nose, "... Okay. That's not a bad idea. I'm a little tired myself. We'll speak more tomorrow."

Ichigo nodded. He didn't have the option of saying no. They lived in the same house.

It was an agreement Ichigo wasn't eager to make, but one he'd end up keeping nonetheless.

* * *

In the morning, he avoided entering the kitchen for as long as physically possible. It wasn't as if he wasn't going to make good on his promise, but that didn't mean he wouldn't procrastinate until the last minute.

Eventually though, someone would come into his bedroom to rouse him and declare that he was 'burning daylight' by sleeping in bed all morning.

So it was with much reluctance and regret that he left the warm confines of his bed to wander downstairs to the kitchen. Kenpachi was already there, ripping into jerky that he'd found God knew where. Every so often, he'd tear off a piece and give it to Yachiru, who was sitting on the table rather than a chair. She thankfully didn't have nearly the voracious appetite as Kenpachi, it would seem.

As Ichigo sat uncomfortably in a chair across the table from Kenpachi, the man looked up.

"So you finally decided to show up. I was beginning to wonder."

"Shut it," Ichigo grumbled, "I fully intended to make an appearance. My bed was just particularly comfortable today."

"Sure it was," Zaraki grinned. His face went grim, "now then, Ikkaku says you devoured one of the undead."

Kenpachi's expression was an indiscernible mask of indifference. Ichigo couldn't tell what the man was thinking, how he may react. It wasn't a good position for him to be in.

"And if I said it was true?" he anxiously asked.

A slow grin crawled its way back across Kenpachi's face. From the looks of it, he'd learned what he wanted to know. "Nothing. Just curious."

Ichigo's eye twitched. All that dread for nothing.

"What?" the man laughed heartily. "You thought I'd try to fight you or kick you out of here or something? Nah."

Ichigo sighed, his shoulders drooping, "Well, I mean, you wouldn't be the first person. Soifon's been trying to get me kicked out of the community ever since I arrived, and she only got worse after… that."

Kenpachi shrugged, nonchalantly replying, "That's none of my business. I just like having a good fight. But I understand you're an asset," he took a chomp of his jerky.

He was about to say something to Kenpachi when there came a scream from the basement.

That could only mean one thing.

"Karin!" he shouted. He was halfway to the stairs before he knew he'd leaped out of his seat.

Running down the stairs as fast as he could, Ichigo made his way to the lab.

He threw open the door that had been slightly ajar.

There, standing in the center of the room was Mayuri, holding Karin against him with an arm wrapped around her neck. She clawed at his arm, but it was of no use.

Unohana lay on the floor, by the toppled over office chair she'd been using to navigate the room. She was motionless, and Ichigo prayed to any higher power out there that was still listening to this damned world that the woman wasn't dead.

However, this was not the time to be concerned about the doctor. His sister was being held hostage, and he was beginning to see red as he glared at the mad scientist.

"Let her go," he growled lowly.

"No."

He caught the glint of something in the man's hand before he fully registered what he was pulling out, and Ichigo was already instinctively pulling out a hidden blade from up his sleeve. It was a close call as Mayuri whipped out a syringe, but in a mere two seconds, he was dropping the tool as a blade bit into his hand.

Ichigo didn't give him time to think. He rushed forward, ripping the man away from his sister and throwing him to the floor. Karin collapsed to her knees, gasping for breath.

Ichigo only barely registered that she was still alive before he'd thrown himself upon the mad scientist and slammed a flurry of fists into his face.

That was when the scent hit him. It was sweet, aromatic, like fresh honey, but in the back of his mind he knew it to be blood.

He froze as his eyes went wide with the shock of it. His stomach gave a violent, unmistakable growl. The hunger was upon him in an instant. It had come out of nowhere.

His mouth was pooling with saliva as the hunger roared within him, clamoring to be sated. There was food right in front of him, it insisted.

 **Rip. Tear. Devour.**

 **Devour him.**

But he was human! Ichigo couldn't eat a human!

 _ **No one will miss him. He's a monster. You've said so yourself.**_

The hunger whispered darkly to him, rationalizing a beastly deed for the sake of its own fulfillment.

Maybe… maybe it would be fine…

Just one bite.

It wouldn't hurt anyone…

Ichigo was unconsciously leaning forward. Unbeknownst to him, his eyes had taken on an eerie, unnatural orange, nearly red glow.

 **Devour him.**

Mayuri was unable to look away from the captivating stare of the apex predator that loomed above him. He did not believe in fear, but somehow, he could not move. His limbs refused to obey him.

Ichigo's tongue was then laving up the column of his throat. The teen nearly keened at the flavor. He'd always imagined that if he ever became a zombie, the mad scientist would be the last person he'd try to eat. He'd always imagined the man would taste stale, or off, or something. But he didn't. The taste was just as glorious as he could have imagined any of the other humans to be.

And Mayuri wasn't a friend.

Mayuri wasn't a friend.

 **Devour him.**

He didn't want to eat his friends, but if Mayuri wasn't a friend, it was okay to eat him, right? He'd attacked his sister, after all.

It was only right. He'd be doing everyone a favor. His sister would be safe.

 _ **Devour.**_

There came a pitiful voice from right behind him, "I-Ichigo…?"

Karin.

"Wh-what are you d-doing, Ichigo?"

Like a whiplash, Ichigo came back to his senses. As the full ramifications of what he'd been about to do came to his mind, he cried out and threw himself as far away from Mayuri as possible.

He'd been about to…

… to…

He wiped furiously with the back of his hand at the saliva that had been dripping down his chin. He couldn't believe he'd nearly done something like that. He'd even convinced himself that he'd be justified.

Ichigo felt like he was going to be sick. He knew he wouldn't be, because his stomach was growling painfully to remind him that it was still quite empty.

He had been about to devour him, and Karin hadn't even been sitting two feet away.

He'd nearly given his only remaining family a front row seat to him eating Kurotsuchi Mayuri alive.

"... Ichigo…?"

He couldn't bring himself to look her in the eye. She'd been the one person he truly wanted to protect. The only person he never wanted to see him like this, and he'd been successful in doing so for all but two days. Hardly even that.

Ichigo stood in a hurry, still not making eye contact, "I need to go," he stated, rushing past the now gathering crowd of people in the lab.

The others were still trying to make sense of what happened, and so they hadn't made a move to stop him.

Karin called out after him, but he didn't come back. The remaining members of the community were left to puzzle together just what had transpired.

Byakuya stared down at Mayuri, who'd soiled himself at some point and was still sprawled out on the floor with a knife in his right hand. The mad scientist was still frozen, staring blindly forward, as if he didn't even realize Ichigo wasn't there anymore.

The others around him were rushing about to pick up the mess that had been made of the lab. Someone was helping up the now conscious Unohana, and another was helping Karin back onto the gurney. People were speaking among one another in hushed tones, looks of fear, confusion, and worry only a few of the emotions he saw among the crowd.

His fingers trembled gently at his side. He felt a chill run down the line of his spine, setting goosebumps across his skin.

Byakuya was beginning to wonder if he'd truly made the right decision, standing up for Ichigo the day before.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** **Love it? Hated it? Want to set in on fire and watch the thing burn? Whatever you think of it, please let me know in a review! Also, feel free to ask questions. They help fuel the next chapter and sometimes give me ideas when I'm running a little low on inspiration.**

 **Until next time!**


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